James Hollis

James (Jim) Elliott Hollis, 86, of Mayo, Florida, passed away Tuesday, March 15, 2022, at Select Specialty Hospital in Gainesville, Florida.

He was born in Marianna, Florida and moved to Mayo, Florida in 2000 from Orlando, Florida.  He was a U.S. Navy Veteran, having served during the Korean War.

James was a Master Dive Instructor and loved scuba diving, spear fishing, boating, teaching and training scuba divers.

He had trained divers for Disney World, Universal Studios and Sea World. He worked with universities and the military, training Navy Seals and helped to create and write the instruction books and guidelines for the International Diving Educators Association (IDEA). In the late ’70’s James was voted in as the National Training Director of IDEA, reorganizing it to become an international certification agency.

He was an active member of Harvest Fellowship Church, in Jasper, Florida, and was an ordained minister. He was also a member of the American Legion and NRA.

He is survived by his wife, Nancy Hollis, of Mayo; two sons, William Hollis and J.J. Hollis, both of Melbourne, Florida; one daughter, Ricky (Dana) Cucle, White Springs, Florida; three grandchildren and three great grandchildren.

Memorial services will be held at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, April 2, 2022, at Harvest Fellowship Church, located at 5544 US Highway 129, Jasper, Florida 32052.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, 4899 Belfort Road, Suite 300, Jacksonville, Florida 32256.

Please keep the Hollis family in your prayers for the days ahead.